Rfissa (Moroccan Chicken with Msemen, Lentils and Fenugreek)

La storia di questo piatto

Rfissa is a Moroccan dish of celebration and care, traditionally laid before new mothers and shared at the table of those who gather to welcome someone home. A free-range beldi chicken rests on a nest of torn msemen, golden with saffron, wrapped in lentils and the faint bitter-sweet whisper of fenugreek.

Ingredienti

• 1,3 kg Free-range whole chicken (beldi)
• 8 pieces Msemen (Moroccan flaky flatbread)
• 250 g Dried lentils
• 2 teaspoons Fenugreek seeds
• 3 medium Onions
• 4 cloves Garlic
• 1 pinch (0.3 g) Saffron threads
• 1 tablespoon Freshly grated ginger
• 1 stick Cinnamon
• 1,5 liters Chicken stock
• 60 ml Olive oil
• 2 teaspoons Salt
• 1 teaspoon Ground black pepper
• 30 g Fresh parsley
• 30 g Fresh coriander
• 2 teaspoons Ras el hanout
• 1 teaspoon Ground turmeric
• 30 g Butter (or smen)
• 100 g Soaked and boiled dried chickpeas
• 700 ml Water for the lentils and to dissolve the saffron

Preparazione

1. The evening before (or at least 4 hours earlier), soak the fenugreek seeds in cold water. Clean the chicken and cut it into 8 pieces. In a large pot, heat the oil with half the butter and brown the chicken pieces without moving them too much, until a golden crust forms, then set aside. In the same pot, over medium-low heat, soften the thinly sliced onions with the garlic and ginger until soft and sweet. Add the ras el hanout, turmeric, pepper and cinnamon and toast the spices for a minute, until fragrant.
2. Return the chicken to the pot, pour in the hot stock, and add the saffron dissolved in a little warm water (about 50 ml), the salt and the already boiled chickpeas. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, cover and simmer gently: the chicken is ready when the meat pulls away easily from the bone, after about 45-50 minutes.
3. While the chicken simmers, drain the soaked fenugreek seeds and rinse them well, then blanch them for 3 minutes in boiling water and drain again to mellow the bitterness. Put the lentils in a pot with the blanched fenugreek seeds and a ladleful of the spiced stock taken from the chicken pot, cover with about 600 ml of water and cook for 25 minutes, until soft but still whole. Adjust the salt at the end of cooking and drain, reserving a little of the cooking liquid.
4. In the last 10 minutes of chicken cooking, preheat the oven to 190°C and bake the msemen for about 6-8 minutes, until crisp at the edges. As soon as they come out, while still warm, tear them by hand into thin strips and spread them over the bottom of the serving dish. Immediately moisten them with a few ladles of hot stock, so they soak up the liquid evenly without falling completely apart.
5. Spread the fenugreek lentils over the soaked msemen bed. Arrange the hot chicken pieces on top, then pour over the cooking broth, unstrained, with the braised onions and chickpeas, which form part of the sauce: it should moisten every layer without flooding it. Finish with the remaining half of the melted butter.
6. Sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley and coriander just before serving. Bring to the table immediately, piping hot, and let each person mix the layers on their own plate.